The Orlando Magic crushed the Atlanta Hawks 113-81 in a one-sided showdown of the Southeast Division’s top two teams on Saturday.
The Magic blew out the Hawks with a 37-point second-quarter performance to snap a four-game losing streak and stretch their division lead to one and a half games.
J.J. Redick scored 17 points starting for injured guard Vince Carter, sparking an 11-0 run in the second quarter that led to a 66-37 halftime lead.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Redick earned the start when Carter missed the game with a sprained left shoulder.
Seven players wound up in double figures for the Magic, who shot 52.4 percent from the floor and led by 38 points in the third.
Matt Barnes had 18 points and Ryan Anderson 16 to lead Orlando.
So one-sided was the score that Magic center Dwight Howard sat out the fourth quarter, finishing with 12 points.
Center Al Horford topped Atlanta with 14 points.
■KINGS 102, NUGGETS 100
AFP, SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA
The Sacramento Kings snapped a five-game losing streak in dramatic style on Saturday when Tyreke Evans hit a jump shot with 0.7 seconds left for a 102-100 victory over Denver.
Evans scored 27 points and his winning basket over Kenyon Martin closed a back-and-forth final period that saw a slew of lead changes.
Denver’s J.R. Smith missed a heave from three-point range at the buzzer. Smith had scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter.
Chauncey Billups had 27 points for Denver and made a three-pointer that tied the score at 100-100 with 11 seconds left.
Martin had 20 points and 10 rebounds for Denver, who were without injured star Carmelo Anthony for a fifth game.
Spencer Hawes scored 17 points, Omri Casspi had 16 and Ime Udoka chipped in 12 for the Kings, who had dropped seven of their previous eight contests.
Denver trailed by one when Nene was called for an offensive foul, giving Sacramento the ball with 22 seconds to play.
The Nuggets fouled Beno Udrih, who made both free-throws to put the Kings in front 100-97, before Billups tied it up again.
Saturday’s other results:
• Jazz 111, Mavericks 93
• Rockets 105, Knicks 96
• Bobcats 89, Grizzlies 87
• Thunder 108, Pacers 102
• Bulls 110, Timberwolves 96
• 76ers 104, Pistons 94
ADVANTAGE ATLETICO: Well off the pace in La Liga, the Copa del Rey represents Atletico Madrid’s best chance of silverware this season Atletico Madrid on Thursday hammered Copa del Rey holders Barcelona 4-0 in the first leg of their semi-final. After an Eric Garcia own-goal sent Diego Simeone’s side ahead early on, Antoine Griezmann, Ademola Lookman and Julian Alvarez struck to give Atletico a landslide lead by halftime. Barca defender Garcia was sent off in the final stages, with Atletico maintaining their significant advantage on the record 32-time winners, which they take into the second leg at the Camp Nou on March 3. Both sides missed good chances in the second half, with Barca’s Pau Cubarsi having a goal disallowed before Garcia was sent off
Dasun Shanaka hammered the fastest half-century by a Sri Lankan in T20Is as the cohosts thrashed Oman by 105 runs at the World Cup yesterday in Pallekele, Sri Lanka, for their second win in Group B. The 2014 champions piled up 225-5, the highest total of the tournament, before restricting an outclassed Oman to 120-9. The 43-year-old Mohammad Nadeem waged a lone battle for Oman, compiling an unbeaten 53 to become the oldest player to score a 50 in T20 World Cups. Having promoted himself up the order and under pressure to deliver, Sri Lanka skipper Shanaka smashed a 19-ball half-century. It has been
Stade Rennais, four days after firing coach Habib Beye, stunned Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 on Friday, snapping the defending champions’ seven-match winning run in French Ligue 1. Second-placed RC Lens could leapfrog the champions and retake top spot last night after press time if they beat Paris FC in the capital. PSG started brightly, with Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue carving openings to no avail. Rennes fired Beye on Monday and promoted his assistant Sebastien Tambouret, and the same players who had lost four games on the bounce seemed transformed. Jordanian forward Mousa al-Tamari bagged the opener, unleashing a fierce strike
Kawhi Leonard on Sunday scored 41 points, grabbed eight rebounds and made four steals to lead the Los Angeles Clippers in a lopsided 115-96 victory at Minnesota. The 34-year-old forward, a two-time NBA champion, matched the second-best road scoring effort of his career as the Clippers improved to 25-27. “Just being aggressive. My teammates trust me,” Leonard said. “Every moment when I touch the ball — assist, shooting the basketball or getting a rebound — I’m just trying to help the team win.” Leonard made three steals in a row at the start of the contest. “Just wanted to come out early in the
RSS